Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1887-06-10
PATHS Daily Routine in the Season.
Naw Work Sup

I
There has been a great deal written and
| printed about Niue. PATHS hons lite, as
| far as that term can be applied to the
rather nemadlc existence passed in hotels
and palace cars. As very few persons,
however, have been privileged to note de
visa the incidents of a prima donna's
daily routine, the published stories have
been rather interesting than accurate.
During Nine. PATHS sojourn in the United
States, which may be taken as a fair speci-
men of her experience elsewhere, her
! days havs gone by with something akin
TO conventional monotony. Awak ening to-
ward O'Clock in the morning, the songs
tress takes cup of coffee before leaving
| her bed chamber. The two or three hours
that go by before luncheon-the French
deIeunner la fourchette-are whiled
away with the maids, the birds ana the
dogs, Signor Nieolini appearing at in
tervals with bit of gossip, a suggestion.
or some startling intelligence apropos of
particularly long run made at the billi-
ard table. At noon luncheon is on the table
and Nine, Patti steps into the dining room
| and claims her share of fish and of one
dish of meat, ending up With bit of
fruit. The prima donna never eats bread
In Its habitual form; the bread laid before
her is cut into thin slices and baked until
1t Is as hard as wood. She drives daily
from to 4:30 or 3.
When Nine. Patti is to sing in the
evealng, she dints at o'clock in the
afternoon; when she is not to perform
dinner Is served at I. One or two friends
are generally invited to dine with la diva.
and formality is avoided as much as pos
slble. The menu is made up il the morn
Ing, and woe to the cook if all its compo-
nent parts are not prepared not merely
to the qusens but to the songstress's and
to the tenor's taste. A great feature of
Nine. PATHS dinners is the ice that is
brought IN at that stage of events at
which the plebelan Roman punch is hab-
itually served. At the Windsor this
marvellous compound is called "La!la
Rookh," and for the behoof of the un-
initiated 1t may be described as resemb-
ling the more widely known "Pouding
nesselbrods," minus the fruit contained
in the latter delectable compound. "Lalla
Rookh" is the single subject, outside of
billiards, upon which Signor Nicolini
wakes positively enthusiastic. His ad-
mlrers will be panied to learn that owing
to his tendency to bilious attacks, his
doctors have forbidden him to partake
of his favorite delicacy with anything
approaching self-indulgence. At dinner
Signor Nicolini drinks claret, but avoids
white wines. As for Nine. Patti, two or
three years ago her physician prescribed
claret, with view to enriching her rather
impoverished blood. Just now no traces
of anamia are perceptible, and Mme
Patti having wearied of claret is permit
ted to Iningle a little whiskey with her
water at dinner only. There is no such
meal as supper IN the Patti household,
and by midnight SignoI and Nine. Nico-
lini have retired.
In days set apart for performances,
Nine. Patti never receives, and does little
or no talking. When she is not to sing
in the evening, she entertains her friends
from l to 2 o'clock il the afternoon, and
after dinner little music of an out of
the way sort, i. e., either playing, banjo
solos, and so on, by artists who are only
too happy to be asked to meet la diva, is
enjoyed by the hostess and her friends.